How tight for worm clamps/fittings?

I bought an immersion cooler and want to make sure that I don't get any leaks when I use it tomorrow. I am assembling the vinyl lines and securing them, but I am never sure how tight to screw the worm clamps in. When should I stop?

Also, I've read a few peoples comments that I really need reinforced tubing on my out because I am assuming the extra heat will warp or destroy simple vinyl?

I had a bad incident with a chiller where I didn't tighten the worm well enough. Once the copper coils heated up from the heat exchange it loosened enough for the pressure of the water to push out the tube. When I came to check on it (yes, I was relaxing, having a homebrew and not at my post in front of the cooling wort) I had an extra 3-gallons of city water in my kettle. I would say, clamp it tight, double clamp it if need be... clamps are cheap, wasting hours brewing then ruining it because you didn't have tight enough hoses is not cheap.

I clamped mine just to the point where the copper started to bend a little.

Did you back the hose about an inch over the copper?

They do make a tool that tightens them. I believe to 60 ftlbs

The correct answer to any question of this form is "snug".

By the way, i use silicone hose on my chiller. One piece lives on the chiller and the other piece doubles as my everyday siphon hose. The good thing about silicone is that it lasts forever and can be boiled and baked. It also holds its round shape better.

runbad said:

They do make a tool that tightens them. I believe to 60 ftlbs

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Sweet deal man. Where did you find one of those. By the time I get to cooling the wort I am drunk enough those straight slots get kind of tricky

60 ft lb is enough for lug nuts for a small car.

Lowes has them in the plumbing department. 60 ftlb is enough for alot of things, maybe hose clamps is one of them

I can almost guarantee that you'll break homebrew rig sized hose clamps by tightening them to 60 ft lbs. They do need to be tight, but a little common sense goes a long way...

Yuri_Rage said:

I can almost guarantee that you'll break homebrew rig sized hose clamps by tightening them to 60 ft lbs. They do need to be tight, but a little common sense goes a long way...

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I CAN guarantee that they will break. Apparently some people just don't realize how tight 60 ft lbs is.

There is no set torque value for these clamps. It depends on the size and type of hose being used, also the application.

My most sincere apology for the miss use of foot pound. It's 60 inch pounds. And I guarantee there is a set torque for all hose clamps.

As for the tool just do an amazon search for hose clamp torque wrench.

runbad said:

My most sincere apology for the miss use of foot pound. It's 60 inch pounds. And I guarantee there is a set torque for all hose clamps.

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Do you have a link to this?

As for the tool just do an amazon search for hose clamp torque wrench.

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That tool is designed for a specific application:
"Designed for use with Orgill Worldwide Sourcing flexible fittings."

Like I said, not all clamps will be tightened to the same torque value. The type of hose being used will dictate this.

60-ft/lbs sounds like too much. Likewise "snug" did not work for me. If you're pinching the copper you're too tight. Make it tighter than you expect but don't over-tighten.

I ended up running water through the chiller and I stopped when there were no more leaks. In this case, it seems it was as snug as it needed to be. The vinyl hosing it came with felt pretty giving, so it took more tightening than I had originally thought. I don't think the copper is pinched, at least I hope not.

Make sure you try it REALLY hot too. The heat will make the tube slip more than with just cold water.

Luckily I tested it with water from my water heater, which was 120. That let me at least see how soft the vinyl would get when warm/hot. On brew day I monitored the chiller as I increased flow, and just kept a screw driver handy. I only had to adjust the cold side slightly, but otherwise, no leaks!

On this note, I think that's what I like about oetiker clamps, despite not being reusable, there is something nice about clamping it and being done... but I am sure thats not the whole story.

I finally broke down and bought a nut driver just for brewing so I do not have to go and find the correct one in my tool box. I double hose clamp and tighten them until the tubing is starting to bulge out the holes in the strap. It ruins about 2 inches of hose every time but I figure hose is cheap